We received a generous grant from the Silkroad Foundation of the Arts for Basket Cultures that made this trip to Moana possible. We will study the Music of Maile Cultures in Moana. The weaving of baskets and other objects was once such a highly developed skill that many of the pieces made by Hawaiian women of old are considered works of art today. Their deft fingers propelled by creative minds fashioned natural materials such as lau hala leaves and makaloa sedge into beautifully woven and dyed objects-mats, baskets, fans, fish traps, sandals, bed coverings and clothing. The arrival of western culture on the islands as well as an increase in trade with the outside world in the 19th century, the availability of cotton cloth and containers, leather goods and man-made fibers, caused the decline of
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